page no. 02
Virat Kohli’s page century will inspire no. 3
Nicki Minaj squashes rumours
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RNI No.: GUJENG/2014/59629
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ENGLISH DAILY MORNING REPUTED NEWS PAPER, AHMEDABAD EDITION Editor : Kapilkumar M. Hirpara
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Centre urged SC to re-visit Nagaraj verdict which had imposed three conditions for grant of quota for SC/ST in promotions.
Short News Mamata trying to divide ‘united opposition’, want to be PM at any cost: WB Cong chief New Delhi: A day after Mamata Banerjee met Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury called the Trinamool Congress supremo a “chameleon” and accused her of hankering after the prime minister’s post. In a no-holds-barred attack on the West Bengal chief minister, Chowdhury alleged that Mamata Banerjee is acting like a “Trojan Horse” and trying to divide a “united opposition” by floating the idea of a federal front, and urged leaders of various parties not to trust her.“Her single objective is to be the prime minister of India. She is hankering after the post of prime minister. She is having a ‘Devegowda-syndrome and Gujral-syndrome’,” he said. Chowdhury also accused Mamata Banerjee of trying to “finish” and “eliminate” the Congress in West Bengal on one hand and seeking the party’s support for the next Lok Sabha elections on the other.
Eyeing 2019, Centre pleads top court to provide SC/ST quota in promotions
New Delhi: Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2019, the NDA government on Friday pleaded in the Supreme Court for providing quota in promotion for SC/ STs in government jobs and urged for reconsideration of 2006 verdict holding against such reservation in promotions. Attorney General K K Venugopal urged a Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices Kurian Joseph, Rohinton Nariman, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Indu Malhotra to re-visit the Nagaraj verdict which had imposed three conditions -identification of backwardness, compelling reasons and inadequate representation -- for grant of quota for SC/ST in promotions. The AG referred to the conditions in Nagaraj judgment and said it was a “situation of impossibility” to comply in every case with
the conditions laid down in M Nagaraj’s judgment. When CJI asked the AG on
Amit Shah’s Kolkata rally to expose Mamata’s U-turn on NRC: BJP leader
Vijay Gutte, director of ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’, held for Rs 34 Cr GST fraud Mumbai: Filmmaker Vijay Ratnakar Gutte, who has directed the upcoming film ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’, which stars Anupam Kher as exPrime Minister Manmohan Singh, has been arrested for alleged Goods and Services Tax (GST) fraud of over Rs 34 crore, a GST department official said on Friday. Gutte was arrested by the Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence or DGGSTI on Thursday and produced before a metropolitan magistrate court in Mumbai which remanded him in judicial custody till August 14, he said. “Gutte has been booked under section 132 (1) (c) of the CGST Act, which pertains to ‘wrongful availment’ of input tax credit using bills and invoices that have been issued without any supply of goods or services,” the official said. According to the official, Gutte’s firm, VRG Digital Corp Pvt Ltd, allegedly procured 149 fake invoices involving GST of Rs 34.37 crore for animation and manpower services received from another company, Horizon Outsource Solutions Pvt Ltd. In May this year, the DGGSTI had arrested the director of Horizon Outsource Solutions for an alleged GST fraud. The agency’s probe into the case revealed that Gutte’s firm was one of the top clients of Horizon Outsource and was shown as receiving services of about Rs 266 crore with a GST implication of Rs 34.37 crore.
New Delhi: Ahead of BJP president Amit Shah’s rally in Kolkata on August 11, the party’s youth wing chief Poonam Mahajan on Friday said it was aimed at “exposing” West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s “U-turn” on the NRC issue. The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) is organising the rally, where Shah will be the chief guest, she told reporters in New Delhi. Mahajan said Banerjee, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief, had
once expressed concern in Parliament over the presence of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in West Bengal during the Left rule in the state. She said she would rather call Banerjee “U-turn didi” and not Mamata didi because of her about turn on the burning issue. “We will expose her,” Mahajan said. The BJP and the TMC, led by their respective presidents, have been engaged in a bitter war of words over the issue of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam.
the adequacy of reservation, he said in promotions too, the SC and ST together
must account for 23 of every 100 promotions in a year. Otherwise, the affirmative action would remain an illusion. He said there was no need for testing backwardness of SC/ ST employees while granting promotion as the Supreme Court itself in Indra Sawhney case in 1992 had said test of backwardness does not apply to SC/STs as they are presumed to be backward. When the CJI wanted to know as to why did the states, for all this time, not prepare quantifiable data to decide adequacy or inadequacy of representation of SC/ST in a cadre of government service, the AG replied: “Why because people die, retire. Data keeps fluctuating. Filling up of vacancies is a dynamic, continuous process.” He said that only this quantum would satisfy adequacy of their representation.
TMC lawmakers ‘unruly’ at Assam airport, detained over law and order: Rajnath Singh
New Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday accused Trinamool Congress MPs of creating an “unruly situation” at the Silchar airport and said they were detained in view of intelligence inputs received by the Assam government on the law and order situation. Six leaders of the Trinamool Congress were on Thursday detained at the Silchar airport while attempting to visit Assam post the publication of the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The six leaders left Assam Friday morning after overnight detention at the airport. The TMC has said the detention and “manhandling” of their party colleagues at the Silchar airport shows there is an “undeclared emergency” in the country. In the Lok Sabha, Singh said since there were prohibitory orders in Assam, state officials had “requested” TMC MPs to return from the airport itself. “The Government of Assam had some information and based on intelligence inputs... In view of the prevailing law
and order situation and so the situation does not deteriorate, TMC MPs were detained at the Silchar airport,” Singh said. TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee, in his speech, said citizens of India have right to move around anywhere in the country and these MPs had categorically told the state government officer at Silchar airport that “they would not hold any public meeting”. Maintaining that the MPs were extended all courtesies, Singh said since there was no return flight to Kolkata or Delhi from
Silchar, the MPs spent the night at the Silchar airport guest house and left for Kolkata this morning and have an onward flight to Delhi. “The kind of respect that should be shown to a public representative, similar respect was shown to TMC MPs. With folded hands the District Magistrate requested them to return. But without paying heed to the request, the MPs got into shoving in which two women security personnel also got hurt,” the Home Minister added.
‘Shameful’, a ‘sin’: Nitish Kumar breaks silence on Bihar shelter home rapes Patna: Days after being targeted by the opposition for his silence over the rape and torture of more than 30 girls at a government-run shelter, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday broke his silence and described the case as
“shameful”, promising strict, uncompromising action against those guilty. “What has happened has shamed us. It is a sin. Such cases should not happen again. Those responsible for this should be taught a lesson. There will be
no compromise,” the Bihar chief minister said. Nitish Kumar has constantly been on the target of the opposition, especially Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, who demanded for the chief minister’s
resignation and accused him of trying to shield the accused over links with the ruling Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)). “We have always said that the guilty would not be spared and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi has said on
Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray to attend Mamata’s January 19 rally in Kolkata Mumbai: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will be participating in a mega rally to be organised by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata on January 19 next year.The TMC chief extended an invite to Thackeray for the rally when she met Sena’s parliamentary party leader Sanjay Raut in New Delhi on Wednesday as part of her marathon meetings with Opposition leaders.Raut told Banerjee that Thackeray would attend the event, a report in The Indian Express said quoting sources. The mega rally is said to project Mamata Banerjee as
august 04, 2019, sunday
the backbone of the anti-BJP alliance in the wake of 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The relationship
between the Shiv Sena -- an NDA constituent -- and the BJP has been witnessing turmoil in
the recent past. Sena abstained from voting when the Opposition took up the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government during the ongoing Monsoon Session of the Parliament. The Sena decision, which came at the last minute, embarrassed the BJP. Thackeray and Mamata Banerjee have maintained a regular contact since November 2016, when Sena MPs had joined her march from the Parliament House to the Rashtrapati Bhavan to protest against demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes.
the floor of the assembly that we would ourselves like the CBI probe to be monitored by the high court,” Nitish Kumar said. The chief minister stressed on the need to develop institutional mechanisms to prevent such incidents from
recurring. Minor girls as young as seven were sedated, raped, forced to sleep naked and boiling water was poured on them at the shelter home by its politically connected owner and its staff, a police charge-sheet has revealed.
Bigoted, discriminatory agenda: Indian-American body wants Assam NRC list suspension New Delhi/Washington: An IndianAmerican advocacy group today called for immediate suspension of the National Registry of Citizens or NRC until the irregularities resulting in four million people being excluded from the list are fixed. The names of 40.07 lakh applicants in Assam did not find a place in the muchanticipated second and final draft of the NRC, a historic document touted to be a proof of Assamese identity. “The ethnic group that is the worst victim of this mass disenfranchisement is the Bengalispeaking Muslim community in Assam, accused of being ‘infiltrators,’ although they are Indian citizens,” the IndianAmerican Muslim Council (IAMC) said in a statement. “The fact that this is
an exercise in subversion of democracy and has a clearly bigoted, discriminatory agenda, is reflected in the exclusion of the relatives of the former President of India,” IAMC president Ahsan Khan said. “The entire programme should be suspended until the criteria for exclusion are clearly defined,” he said. It called on the Indian government not to allow religious differences to define the sociopolitical landscape of the country, where something as basic as a citizen’s right to be called a citizen of the country is arbitrarily snatched away. The first draft of the NRC was published during the intervening night of December 31 and January w1 this year, containing 1.9 crore names.
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Hollywood Bollywood Mouni Roy keeps The actress is currently focussed on the release of her film Gold.
sunday, 04 august, 2019
NRC and the nativity test in Assam
The inhabitants of Assam have now reached the penultimate stage of their nativity test with the publication of the final draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) on July 30. A little more than four million people, almost the size of the total population of Panama or Georgia, have been left out of the draft NRC. Both the Supreme Court, that is monitoring the mega NRC exercise that began in 2015, and the government have made it clear that all those people whose names have not figured in the draft NRC will have the opportunity to file claims. Besides, there is a provision to file objections against anyone whose nationality could be a matter of doubt. The claims and objections process starts on August 30 and ends on September 28. Until this process is over and the final NRC published, no adverse action can be initiated by anyone against these four million people like referring their cases to the foreigner determination tribunals or sent to detention centres. Now briefly, why is this NRC exercise only in Assam, that has cost the government a whopping Rs 1,220 crores? The genesis of this process, which is Independent India’s biggest enumeration exercise in any single state, lies on the fear that Assam’s indigenous population was indeed facing a threat of being overwhelmed by hordes of illegal migrants from neighbouring Bangladesh who had infiltrated over the years. And, to determine who is a native and who is an alien, the cutoff date of March 24, 1971 was agreed upon while updating the NRC. This cutoff date has been derived from the agreed date in the Assam Accord of 1985 for detection and expulsion of illegal migrants which had brought the curtain down on the six-yearlong anti-foreigner (read anti-Bangladeshi migration) movement of the 1980s. For the past four decades, Assam has been a witness to the murky politics of citizenship. One of the BJP’s major charges against the Congress in Assam has been that it was protecting the migrants because they were a bulk votebank. In this backdrop, it was not surprising to find the NDA government at the Centre push ahead with the unimplemented decision to go for updating the NRC in Assam that was last listed in 1951. The idea was to free Assam of illegal migrants, and for this it was necessary to have a list of citizens first. The uproar in Parliament all this week, and the shrill, even hysterical statements by leaders like West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee that it could lead to a “civil war” situation is not surprising.
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Editor
mum about future projects
Mumbai: Actress Mouni Roy, who made her bigscreen debut with a dance number in Tum Bin 2, is gearing up for the release of Gold, her first film as a heroine. Meanwhile, she has also bagged three other prestigious projects. Mouni will be seen in Brahmastra with Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt; RAW with John Abraham; and Made In China with Rajkummar Rao. Of her foray into Bollywood, the former small-screen actress says, “I love doing what I do. I am very excited and nervous about the future. I will talk about theprojects when they
happen.” Mouni will soon be seen playing Akshay Kumar’s wife in Gold, and she seems to have had a great time working with the actor. “It was great working with Akshay as a co-star. He doesn’t believe in any hierarchy; he treats the director and the spot boys alike. He keeps playing pranks, and he tries to keep everyone happy,” she says. The actress adds that her first Bollywood film has been truly memorable. “It was my first film as an actress, and so every moment spent on the set was very dear to me. I also loved shooting both the songs in the film,” she says.
Beer for hair, fruit on face, Sridevi’s special trick: What went into Janhvi’s beauty
Mumbai: Janhvi Kapoor’s acting chops might have got mixed reviews, but there’s not an iota of doubt about her beauty and style, something she was in the news for even before her debut in the successful ‘Dhadak’. Looking beautiful and carrying yourself with grace is no mean feat, and there’s a lot that goes into the process. For someone who might
not be too well-versed with tips and tricks people use for their body, Janhvi’s list of ‘edible’ items for her skin and hair might come as a surprise, though some of it is actually common. Moreover, there’s something very special that’s played a part in her beauty, her mother, legendary Sridevi’s secret way to make oil and give her massage, a thing
the debutante will surely miss now. “I put a lot of food in my hair—eggs, beer, and methi. Some people also go with onion juice but methi is where I draw the line,” Janhvi told Vogue as she geared up for her debut red carpet appearance as an actress at their recently held awards show. She added, “Mom used to have these secret tips and formulas to maintain good skin and good hair. She would make our hair oil at home with dried flowers and amla, and she’d make sure she gave me and Khushi (sister) and oil massage every three days. Whatever leftover we had from breakfast, we’d put on our face, like strawberries or other fruit, it’d go on us. ” We’re not sure how many ‘Aam Aadmis’ can become beautiful and maintain good skin and hair if the aforementioned ingredients are that important.
Richa Chadha visits Shakeela’s ancestral home for research
New Delhi : Richa Chadha, who will soon be playing the famed Malayali actress Shakeela in the biopic to be directed by Indrajit Lankesh, is busy preparing for the role. The actress has already met with the southern siren to learn about her life. “Richa is extremely thorough with her preparation, no matter what the role. She will soon be heading to Shakeela’s ancestral home to understand her family history and dynamics. She will also learn the local dialect there to get the tone of the character right,” a source says. Shakeela herself will be showing Richa around her home and neighbourhood. Meanwhile, the Fukrey actress has started watching some of Shakeela’s biggest hits to study her screen presence and body language. The biopic goes on floors later this month, and she wants to make sure she’s ready by then.
Nicki Minaj squashes rumours
New Delhi : Pitting Nicki Minaj against best friend Ariana Grande is not the best idea. The Chun-Li rapper shut down claims of internet trolls that she would be delaying her next studio album Queen by a week to avoid competition with Ariana Grande’s album release Sweetener, reports People.com. Minaj replied “I love this woman. Can’t wait for the fans to benefit from all the hard work on both ends. We love your passion. You guys will be VERY happy. Trust. That’s all I’ll say (sic),” to a tweet by Ariana grande where the latter said she “laughed” at the assumption by trolls. Queen was set originally set to drop on June 15, but was pushed back two months as the Nicki wanted to perfect the album and obtain rights to sample singer and song-writer Tracy Chapman in one of her songs.
No one but me for Mogul: Akshay Kumar
Mumbai: Ever since Akshay Kumar opted out of the Gulshan Kumar biopic Mogul earlier this year, the makers have been on the lookout for a suitable replacement. Rumour has it that the role has been offered to Ranbir Kapoor. But Akshay believes that there’s no one better suited than him to play the late music baron. “I do not think anyone besides me can play that role,” he says. Meanwhile, Akshay is gearing up for the release of Gold, in which he plays the Indian hockey coach Tapan Das. The sports-enthusiast says that it should be made compulsory for everyone in the country to practice a sport. “Everyone needs to play at least one sport — whether it’s children, men, women, or old people.
I’m very excited about Sarfarosh 2: John Abraham confirms his next
Mumbai: Confirming that he will be featuring in the sequel of Aamir Khan’s “Sarfarosh”, actor John Abraham says he is geared up for the actiondrama, which will be different from the original. Directed by John Matthew Matthan, the 1999 film featured Aamir, Naseeruddin Shah, and Sonali Bendre. “Sarfarosh” chronicled the story of an Indian police officer’s quest to stop crossborder terrorism.In an in interview with PTI, Abraham says, “John Mathew Matthan and I are co-producing the film. We are still working on the script but yes it’s happening with me. We plan to go on floors next year. He is probably the only director whose house I went to after seeing ‘Sarfarosh’ and said ‘Man what a film’.” “Sarfarosh” opened to
critical acclaim and went on to win the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing
Wholesome Entertainment. When asked if he is apprehensive since the original featured Aamir, Abraham said, “I’m in fact very excited. I love Aamir Khan, I’m his big fan. It’s a challenge but it’s a different character, different story but the ethos is the same. It’s going to be very exciting.” The actor’s line up of films, beginning with “Satyamev Jayate” releasing on August 15, includes “Batla House”, and “RAW: Romeo Akbar Walter.” “’Batla House’ will be the most explosive film you’ve seen. It’ll show how polarised the world is and it’s straight in its face. If we accept ‘Batla House’ it’ll be the most successful film,” he says. Directed by Nikkhil Advani, the film, features Abraham as the cop who led the Batla House encounters.
Aayush Sharma has his fingers crossed
Mumbai: Aayush Sharma’s moment has arrived. Four years after becoming a part of the Khan family, the actor has found the perfect launchpad with Loveratri, a film being produced by his very own brother-in-law Salman Khan. Hailing from a prominent political family, Aayush didn’t have a connection to the movie world before marriage. “I was a movie buff, so once in a while, I would think I should become an actor. But it was a naive thought. Some family members also told me that I should consider movies, but I never took the conversation forward ,” he says. The turning point was when Salman himself asked Aayush to consider acting. “He must have seen something in me. I then started training hard for a couple of hours every day. Slowly, I started liking it,” he says, adding, “I trained for close to 13 hours daily, for four years. The training included gymnastics, action, acting, diction, dance and flexibility classes.” Aayush is aware of how privileged he is. “I am very lucky to have him (Salman). I am getting this kind of an attention because of him.
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Virat Kohli’s century will inspire teammates: Chris Gayle
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Badminton World Championships 2018: Saina Nehwal suffers humiliating loss to Carolina Marin
Andy Murray digs deep to win at Citi Open, gets emotional
New Delhi : Virat Kohli’s hundred in the first Test against England provides just the kind of inspiration that a struggling Indian batting line-up needed, feels Chris Gayle. Kohli scored a classic 149, his first hundred in England to rescue India from a precarious position in the first Test. “I was busy with a shoot in Mumbai and only watched the highlights. It was a captain’s knock from Virat. The best part was how he batted with the tail. That is the perfect start you want in a series,” Gayle told reporters during an interaction at a promotional event on poker. While the other Indian batsmen came to a cropper, Gayle expects that Kohli’s will certainly lift the spirits. “A knock like this, especially from the captain and lot have been said about his form in England and hopefully
this knock will spur him and the team during the series,” the flamboyant Jamaican said. When asked if India could win the series against England, Gayle replied: “Why not? Aren’t they humans?” Asked to compare Joe Root’s 80 with Kohli’s 100, Gayle cheekily replied: “I didn’t see Root’s 80. I only saw his run-out and the mic drop.” He is confident that he will be fit and ready for the 2019 World Cup next year. “I will have to sit with the coaches and selectors and ask them about their plan. I am confident of playing the World Cup,” Gayle said. Dale Steyn is set to retire after the ODI World Cup but Gayle made it clear that he would like to play another year. “My plan is to play till 2020 World T20 in Australia,” he replied.
Washington : Andy Murray sat in his changeover chair and sobbed into a towel after winning his third consecutive three-setter to reach the Citi Open quarterfinals, then complained about a schedule that had him on the court until 3 a.m. Murray worked deep into the night to get past 93rdranked Marius Copil of Romania 6-7 (5), 6-3, 7-6 (4) in a match that finished in the wee hours in front of 100 or so spectators after beginning at midnight as Thursday turned to Friday. “Finishing matches at 3 in the morning is not good.
It’s not good for the players. It’s not good for anyone, I don’t think, involved in the event. It’s not good for fans, TV. Nobody,” said Murray, a former No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion who is trying to return to form after having hip surgery in January. Currently ranked 832nd, Murray ended an 11-month absence from the tour in June, playing just three matches before arriving at the Citi Open. Murray has now played a trio of three-setters — each lasting more than 2 1/2 hours — in a four-day span.
Washington : Saina Nehwal’s impressive run came to a disappointing end at the World Championships as she suffered a straight-game loss to two-time champion Carolina Marin in Nanjing on Friday. It turned out to be a lop-sided contest between the 2015 edition finalists as reigning Olympic champion Marin once again produced her ‘A’ game on the big occasion to complete an emphatic 21-6 21-11 victory. The mixed doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also couldn’t cross the quarterfinal hurdle, losing 17-21 10-21 to top seeds Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong of China. A 5-4 head-to-head count meant little as Marin dismantled Saina with consummate ease. The Spaniard stamped her authority on the
match, parading the court and screaming her heart out after winning every point. “Her movement was very quick today. She was moving so fast and covering the court very quickly. The kind of shots that she played, it seemed like she was suddenly very fast. Also, I had a late match yesterday so to face someone so quick was difficult. I didn’t understand what to do, she never gave me a chance to play my game,” Saina told reporters. Marin said: “I’m doing well since the first day. I was in control today. I’m the fastest in the world, it is my strength and I have to keep doing it. I am happy to reach the semifinal. The favourite player (Tai Tzu Ying) to win the tournament lost today, so I’ll try to give the best against China’s He Bingjiao.”
India U-19 star Anuj Rawat under scanner for playing unsanctioned league in Mauritius New Delhi: Delhi’s wicketkeeper-batsman Anuj Rawat, who recently captained India U-19 in four-day matches in Sri Lanka, is under the scanner for playing an unsanctioned T20 league in Mauritius last year along with a host of Pakistani cricketers. The tournament was held in June last year and Anuj played in it alongside some lesser-known first-class players like Asad Pathan.Normally for playing in leagues in UK or Bangladesh, a cricketer needs (No Objection Certificate) NOC from BCCI to apply for visa. However, for travelling to Mauritius, Indian nationals don’t need a visa if the intended stay is for not more than 60 days. The visa policy states: “You don’t need a visa
to enter Mauritius. On arrival, your passport will be stamped allowing entry to the country for 60 days. You’ll need to be able to provide evidence of onward or return travel.” The rule allowed the cricketers to bypass BCCI and play in the tournament, which featured a lot of questionable names. It is learnt that India’s U-19 World Cup hero Manjot Kalra had also sought permission from the BCCI to play this particular tournament, only to be rejected by the parent body. Anuj, who is currently playing a one day series against Sri Lanka colts, appeared to have not procured any NOC from the BCCI to play in the unsanctioned tournament. A youtube video of the tournament has emerged and Anuj
Business Jet Airways slumps 6 per cent in morning trade on bourses
is seen playing in a match between teams named Flac Royals and Quatre Borne. Anuj’s opposing team comprised former Pakistan cricketer Hasan Raza, who had featured in the sting operation conducted by the Al Jazeera network. Former England international Owais Shah also played the tournament. Acting BCCI secretary Amitabh Chaudhary was shocked to know that some players have played in the unsanctioned tournament. “The age group players are educated by BCCI at the national level. This is very unfortunate if junior players have gone ahead and played unsanctioned tournament. This needs to be looked into seriously,” Choudhary said BCCI
Mistry approaches NCLAT against his removal from Tata Sons
New Delhi: Ousted Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry on Friday approached the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) against the order of NCLT dismissing his plea challenging his removal as chairman of the company. A petition was filed before the appellate tribunal against the July 9 order of the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). “We have filed the appeal today,” Mistry’s counsel said. Mistry’s appeal is now with the registry of the NCLAT, which would forward it after technical verification. Asked as to when would the matter be listed for hearing, the counsel said: “Nothing has been decided as of now.” On July 9, NCLT Mumbai had dismissed pleas
of Cyrus Mistry challenging Mistry’s removal as Tata Sons chairman as also the allegations of rampant misconduct on part of Ratan Tata and the company’s Board. A special bench of the tribunal held that the Board of Directors at Tata Sons was “competent” to remove the executive chairperson of the company. NCLT bench members B S V Prakash Kumar and V Nallasenapathy said that Mistry was ousted as chairman because the Tata Sons’ Board and its majority shareholders had “lost confidence in him”. Under the Companies Act 2013, an order of NCLT can be challenged before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).
Govt to appeal arbitration ruling on Reliance, ONGC dispute
New Delhi: India will appeal against a ruling by an international tribunal in favour of Reliance Industries Ltd and its international partners in a dispute over gas migration from fields operated by state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp Ltd. “We will definitely appeal at the highest forum against the international arbitration order favouring Reliance,” Dharmendra Pradhan, India’s oil minister said on Friday. Reliance and its partners BP Plc and Niko Resources filed an arbitration notice against the government in November 2016 after the government imposed a $1.55 billion fine on the consortium for selling gas that migrated from state-owned ONGC’s fields in the east coast Krishna-Godavari basin.
Tech Mahindra inks ICICI Bank chairman pact with Telangana for assures of priority to first Blockchain district
The airline has proposed up to 25 per cent pay cut for employees. New Delhi: Shares of Jet Airways on Friday slumped nearly 6 per cent in morning trade on the bourses after reports surfaced that the company’s financials are in bad shape and drastic measures need to be taken to cut costs. Shares of the company today opened on a weak note at Rs 324.80, then fell 5.72 per cent to a low of Rs 312.25 on BSE. Similar movement was seen on the NSE as well, where the stock of the company opened at Rs 323.90, then fell to a low of Rs 312.15, down 5.73 per cent over its previous closing price. According to media reports Jet Airways has informed its employees that the airline will not be able to operate
beyond 60 days unless cost cutting measures, which include pay cuts, are put in place. Earlier reports had surfaced that the airline has proposed up to 25 per cent pay cut for employees, but the proposal has been rejected by pilots and and engineers. The full-service carrier was believed to be in discussions with certain sections of employees on the salary cut proposal, which has been mooted amid efforts to save costs. Jet Airways, which completed 25 years of operations earlier this year, had 16,558 permanent employees as on March 31, 2018. Besides, there were a total of 6,306 temporary/casual employees, as per the airline’s annual report for 2017-18.
Hyderabad: The Telangana State Information Technology, Electronics and Communication department (ITE&C) on Friday signed an MoU with Tech Mahindra to launch India’s first Blockchain district here. It will be a centre of excellence, an incubator and process development for the emerging technology with innovative infrastructure and facilities to foster growth of Indian blockchain start-ups and companies, Tech Mahindra CEO and managing director CP Gurnani said at the International Blockchain Congress 2018 here. Tech Mahindra as a founding member of the blockchain district will provide the platform and technology assistance to all the incubators in it, he said. Tech Mahindra will also
empower accelerators to develop and solve market problems across its global customer ecosystem. Further, the Telengana ITE&C Department will provide regulatory and policy support to enable and promote Blockchain growth both in India and globally. The launch of the Blockchain district is a moment in history, he said adding it would be a global talent hub which can unlock the value of blockchain technology in democratising data and solving big scale world problems. “It is also a huge step in reskilling and right skilling the workforce of the future. Blockchain experts will be our crowning jewels as together we work towards making India the blockchain capital of the world,” he added.
governance practices
New Delhi: Newly appointed ICICI Bank chairman Girish Chandra Chaturvedi has assured shareholders that he would give top priority to upholding the best governance practices as the bank facing controversies involving CEO Chanda Kochhar. Chaturvedi hopes uncertainties would be resolved at the earliest. The bank has appointed an independent enquiry committee on the allegations of quid pro quo and conflict of interest against Kochhar with respect to a loan to Videocon group. Pending the enquiry, headed by former Supreme Court Judge B N Srikrishna, Kochhar has gone on a long leave from June. In the recent months, the bank has faced questions with regard to governance, Chaturvedi said in the Chairman’s message to shareholders in the bank’s annual report for 2017-18. “The board of directors have instituted an enquiry to examine issues relating to the same. The scope of enquiry will be comprehensive and we hope to conclude the uncertainties relating to
the issue at the earliest,” Chaturvedi said. “It will be my topmost priority to uphold the best governance practices at this esteemed institution,” he added. The bank had appointed the former bureaucrat as its new nonexecutive part-time Chairman in late June. Chaturvedi, 65, replaced former Chairman M K Sharma whose term ended on June 30, 2018. The country’s largest private sector lender registered its first ever loss in more than a decade at Rs 120 crore in the first quarter of the current fiscal due to higher provisioning for bad loans. It had posted a net profit of Rs 2,049 crore in the April-June period of last fiscal. In 2017-18, the bank had posted a net profit of Rs 6,777 crore. However, its gross bad loans by end-March 2018 remained at an elevated level of 8.84 of gross advances by that period, translating into Rs 54,063 crore. “ICICI Bank has seen its share of challenges in the recent past due to the elevated level of nonperforming assets (NPAs) but has been dealing with them in the best interest of all stakeholders,” Chaturvedi said.
4 / Dt. 04-08-2019, sunday, Ahmedabad
Hit by flood last year, Banaskantha farmers pray for rain now
Banaskantha : A year ago, ravaging floodwater and a major breach in the Narmada Main Canal in Banaskantha district of Gujarat, had swept away homes as well as the top fertile soil of farms belonging to the Vaghela family. This monsoon, the family at Khariya village is struggling to keep their cotton crop alive on two of their 20 bighas farmland which they have managed to clear off gravel and sand dumped during the deluge. The district — where farmers have already sown 4.04 lakh hectares of Kharif crop — has received just 24 per cent of its annual rainfall, this year. “The lone borewell of our farm continues to remain immersed under the gravel deposited by the floodwater last year. As we do not have money to set up a new borewell, we have re-laid a new pipeline to draw water from the Narmada Main Canal. The old one was cut off by the state government two months ago when it became strict about directly drawing water from the canal,” says 25year-old Shravan Vaghela, referring to the state government’s move to stop Narmada canal water pilferage due to water shortage in Sardar Sarovar dam this summer. The Vaghela family consisting of three brothers have shifted from tents
— where they lived eight months after the floods swept away their homes — to newly built concrete structures. “Before the floods, we used to sow cotton and bajra and earn close of Rs 60,000 from the Kharif harvest. But now, with gravel occupying maximum portion of our farm, we have planted cotton crop in only two bighas. But even they are struggling due to paucity of rainfall,” says Sharvan who has to pump out water from the Narmada canal for three hours every four days to keep the cotton crop alive. In the adjoining farm, Dhansang Vaghela has planted castor crop instead of cotton. “The rainfall has been scarce this year and castor does not need much water,” he said when asked why he chose castor over other crops. This year, Banaskantha has received only 152 mm rainfall, which is just 24 per cent of the seasonal average. In talukas like Kankrej — where the Vaghela family resides — the recorded rainfall this monsoon is mere 12 per cent, so far. In comparison, by the end of July 2017, Banaskantha had received more than 1,000 mm of rainfall, which was twice more than the long-period average rainfall for the district where the average rainfall is 632 mm.
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Delhi pips Gujarat to top investment potential index Delhi has toppled Gujarat from the top spot in a list of 21 states and union territories with the most investment potential, according to a report by economic think-tank NCAER.
Ahmedabad : Delhi has toppled Gujarat from the top spot in a list of 21 states and union territories with the most investment potential, according to a report by economic think-tank NCAER. The national capital is followed by Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Haryana, Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and West Bengal. The ranking of 20 states and one Union Territory of Delhi was based on six pillars — land, labour, infrastructure, economic climate, governance and political stability and business perceptions. “Compared to 2017, Delhi jumps one spot to lead N-SIPI 2018,
Gujarat ranks at the third position,” NCAER said in a statement. NCAER launched the N-SIPI (State Investment Potential Index) series in March 2016. Gujarat had topped both the previous editions of the ranking. Assam, Jharkhand and Bihar are ranked among the least favourable states for investment. However, they score higher under individual pillars, with Bihar doing better in labour, Assam in land and Jharkhand in the economy criterion, it said. It also said “corruption continues to be the number one constraint faced by businesses, as found in the N-SIPI 2017 survey. But perceptions of corruption may be changing”.
international Bangladesh capital hit by mass protests demanding safe roads
Dhaka : Dhaka remained largely cut off from the rest of Bangladesh on Friday, with local and long-distance buses staying off the roads after five days of protests by young people demanding safer streets. The protests, which began Sunday after two college students were struck and killed by a pair of buses, eventually paralyzed the city, with tens of thousands of demonstrators blocking roads. Students also stopped thousands of private vehicles including those of top officials and judges demanding to see if the cars were registered and the drivers licensed. One minister had to abandon his vehicle in the street after protesters found that his paperwork was not in order, according to news reports. There was no sign of mass protests Friday, the beginning of the country’s weekend, but dozens of people formed a human chain in front of the main press club in Dhaka to call for transportation reform. “We must bring changes,” said Selina Akter, a mother of two schoolchildren who joined the group. Corruption is rife in Bangladesh, making it easy for unlicensed drivers and unregistered vehicles to ply the roads. At least 12,000 people die each year in road accidents often blamed on faulty vehicles, reckless driving and lax traffic enforcement.
Vadodara Woman’s Naroda Gam riots: Kodnani was present at ‘Kiki Challenge’ spot for around 10 minutes, SIT tells court Top China, US diplomats meet amid trade tensions in Singapore As Vehicles Honk, Cops Not Amused
Vadodara : The police in Gujarat have warned against the “Kiki Challenge”, after a video of a woman performing the dance dare in Vadodara with cars honking after her went viral. The challenge, which involves dancing to Canadian singer Drake’s song ‘In My Feelings’ next to a moving car, has become notorious after many variations of the challenge across the globe went out of hand.Rizwana Meer, a resident of Vadodara, can be seen in the video attempting to dance to the song as she shrugs off a car which keeps honking behind her. A comedy group based out of Gujarat said it made the video, which it uploaded on its Facebook page. Gujarat police took to Twitter warning people to “not
perform or accept” the Kiki challenge, also known as the ‘Keke Challenge’ or the ‘In My Feelings’ challenge. A Vadodara police official issued a warning on Wednesday, saying the challenge was “very dangerous for you and people around you”, according to news agency ANI. Responding to the backlash it received against the video, the founder of the comedy group said in a Facebook post that the group had made the video “to urge people not to do it”. The Kiki challenge has been performed across the world by celebrities and ordinary people alike, often resulting in serious injuries or robberies Many have also shot videos of cows, camels, goats and dogs performing the challenge.
Ahmedabad : The SIT probing the Naroda Gam massacre case of 2002 Gujarat riots on Friday told the special court in Ahmedabad that the main accused and former state minister Mayaben Kodnani was present at the spot for around 10 minutes and left after “instigating the mob”. During today’s hearing, Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Gaurang Vyas told Special Judge M K Dave that concrete evidence in the form of eyewitness accounts establish Kodnani’s presence at Naroda Gam at around 9:00 am on February 28, 2002, a day after the Godhra train burning incident. Questioning the defence witnesses who had claimed that Kodnani was either in the Gujarat Assembly in Gandhinagar, or at her hospital in Ahmedabad or at Sola civil hospital that day, Vyas said that such witnesses were “created only to save Kodnani”.In her defence, Kodnani had claimed before the court that she
was in Gujarat Assembly in Gandhinagar during the early hours of February 28 and then arrived at Sola civil hospital, where bodies of ‘karsevaks’ were brought from Godhra. Vyas maintained that Kodnani reached Naroda Gam at around 9:00 am after leaving from Gandhinagar at around 8:40 am. The SPP said that the records of her mobile tower locations suggests that she reached Sola area at around 10:00 am.Citing the testimonies of eye witnesses, Vyas said that people of that area saw Kodnani at Naroda Gam during the morning. He said that the case against Kodnani is mainly about instigating the mob by giving a speech outside the Naroda Gam area. “Eyewitnesses have said that she was there for around 10 minutes. She did not enter the area. She came, made a speech to instigate the mob and left. This case is mainly about inciting the mob,” Vyas said.
Customer complaints against banks in Gujarat rise by 93% Ahmedabad : The percentage of customer complaints reaching the Banking Ombudsman of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from Gujarat has seen a growth of 93 per cent in four years between 2014 to 2018. Out of these, a majority of complaints are related to banks levying charges without prior notice, non-adherence to fair practices code and those connected to mobile and electronic banking, RBI officials said Thursday. According to figures from RBI, the number of complaints received from Gujarat grew from 4,965 in 2014-15 to 9,600 in 2017-18. These, as per the figures, accounted for about 7 per cent of the total complaints received nationally during this period. The average cost incurred
for handling a complaint by the banking ombudsman in Gujarat during 2016-17 was about Rs 4,621. While the figures for 201718 are yet to be made public, RBI officials said the total number of complaints handled by the Banking Ombudsman at an allIndia level is expected to rise by
over 25 per cent, compared to the previous year. “Though financial literacy is high in Gujarat, the number of complaints coming from the state is low,” an RBI official said under conditions of anonymity. In 2017-18, complaints related to nonadherence to fair practices code
as adopted by individual banks tops the complaint category table from Gujarat. Complaints from this category for 27.4 per cent of the total complaints received by the Banking Ombudsman from the state, which is also higher than the all-India average of 22.1 per cent. Similarly, complaints about banks levying service charges without prior notice to the customer also stand at 11.1 per cent. The percentage of complaints from this category in the state is significantly higher than the average of five per cent that exists country-wide. Apart from this, complaints related to failure on commitments (11.7 per cent), recovery agents (0.4 per cent), para-banking (0.5 per cent) is also more than the national averages.
Singapore : The Chinese government’s top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi, met US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Singapore on Friday on the sidelines of a regional forum, amid an increasingly bitter trade war between the two countries. Reporters were ushered from the room before the two men began their formal talks. US President Donald Trump on Wednesday instructed his trade officials to look at increasing tariffs to 25 per cent from 10 per cent on $200 billion in Chinese imports into the United States. Trump, who has accused China and others of exploiting the United States in global trade, has demanded that Beijing make a host of concessions to avoid the new duties, which could be imposed in the weeks after a comment period closes on Sept. 5. China, however, shows no sign of bending to Washington’s pressure. Wang, who is also China’s foreign minister, urged the United States on Thursday to calm down and “carefully listen to the voices of US consumers”. So far, the United States has imposed duties on $34 billion of imports from China as part of a first tranche of sanctions on $50 billion of goods.
Mexico touts progress in NAFTA talks with US, but toughest issues remain
Washington : Negotiators for Mexico and the United States have reached agreement on about 20 topics during talks to revamp NAFTA, Mexico’s economy minister said on Thursday, although he conceded that some of the thorniest issues remained unresolved. Ildefonso Guajardo said after leaving a meeting with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer that the group had yet to discuss issues such as the “sunset clause,” a provision sought by the United States under which the agreement would have to be renegotiated every five years. But he was upbeat about the group’s progress. “There are a lot of things, at least 20 items, that have been worked through, and there is very good advancement in all of them,” he said. Talks among Mexico, the United States and Canada to modernize the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement have dragged on since last year, after US President Donald Trump said he wanted a better deal for US business and workers. Guajardo and other Mexican officials returned to Washington this week for another of bilateral talks with the United States. Hopes for a deal have risen since Mexican leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s victory in the country’s July 1 presidential election. Lori Wallach, head of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch division, a Washington-based public advocacy group, said the views of the United States and Mexico were converging on NAFTA policy, in large part because Lopez Obrador’s team had been backing the U.S. objective to raise wages for automotive workers.
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